As a designer , artists or creative - maybe you can relate to this next little story - A very long while ago i was introduced to my very much younger self - although the medium of artistic expression was different, the insatiable need for validation and approval was exactly the same as me at that same age. I was sitting chatting to folk as one does, when i was touched on the shoulder by my younger self and asked if i wanted to see a handstand. i said sure - and my younger self proceeded an attempt at a 4 year old hand stand. Not at all very good but because i was me and recognized my own need for validation from people, i said - wow what a fantastic handstand. well that small sentence opened the gates of handstand attempting Muizenberg garden world championships.
My younger self had hands on the ground more than feet and i felt compelled or even forced to say after each attempt - wow - incredible - amazing. I did this because i used to do the same with my drawing attempts. I would rustle up a sketch of a cowboy or an eagle and show the sketch to everyone - that need for affirmation drove me to my next sketch. So the fact that im still sketching and pushing ideas, i now recognize my handstand self. The difference now at 47 years, i dont have this insatiable need for external affirmation as i did back then. Hay dont get me wrong - i love any small wow or oohs or even an aaagh - but i recognize when its real or not. so i do my handstand - good bad and downright ugly - i stand up and simply do another one. If i have the privilege of an audience thats awesome. However whats driving me to put my hands onto the floor again isnt the need for their affirmation anymore.
However i do try self artistically evaluate - mostly the sketches are to make sense of a fleeting design concept. Capture the butterfly of creative thought in a sketch - I must say my ability to capture doesn't equal the imagined concept in my head - It always seems like i almost get my artistic expressive legs in the air, before i come crashing down to the earth again. But hay the point of this is - one must never stop trying to communicate your artistic ideas. So many highly talented, super sensitive creative gifted people stop creating because of a lack of appreciation of their expression from the "audience". The audience of critics is secondary to the creative itch you must simply keep scratching my creative friend.
That to me is extremely sad - a young close relative of mine used to love singing and at 7 they used to sing around the house and fill the space with such enthusiasm and lovely warm vibrant sound energy. I really loved it. I made the complete and absolute fatal mistake of encouraging them to share this energy. I told them to sing infront of an audience panel for a school assignment - The panel of teachers where sadly simply not equipped to deal with the handstand build to gymnast creative phenomena process. Brutal dystopian honesty was the Orwellian 1984 given mindset. The sad upshot of that is the young relative, now 18yrs has not ever filled the space with her beautiful voice since then. They where emphatically handstand silenced by the critic audience - they where very nervous , and possibly didn't sing as well as they could - instead of encouraging further development of the expressive skill at 7, it was very important for the non educator audience inquisition gestapo to crush them completely. Why educators are determined to crush potentail and destroy artistic expression is beyond me. To much attitude SC (Simon Cowell) - people think its their god given right and duty to tell artistic expressionists and exhibitionists to please stop right now - lets face it - have you heard ol Simon Critic sing? - i haven't - maybe he can - maybe he cant - but he is currently the self appointed absolute final say on singing ability - And yes for the show its absolutely necessary. The audience loves a good creative assassination. A rip and tear of the fragile irresdecence of ethereal creative beauty.
That to me is extremely sad - a young close relative of mine used to love singing and at 7 they used to sing around the house and fill the space with such enthusiasm and lovely warm vibrant sound energy. I really loved it. I made the complete and absolute fatal mistake of encouraging them to share this energy. I told them to sing infront of an audience panel for a school assignment - The panel of teachers where sadly simply not equipped to deal with the handstand build to gymnast creative phenomena process. Brutal dystopian honesty was the Orwellian 1984 given mindset. The sad upshot of that is the young relative, now 18yrs has not ever filled the space with her beautiful voice since then. They where emphatically handstand silenced by the critic audience - they where very nervous , and possibly didn't sing as well as they could - instead of encouraging further development of the expressive skill at 7, it was very important for the non educator audience inquisition gestapo to crush them completely. Why educators are determined to crush potentail and destroy artistic expression is beyond me. To much attitude SC (Simon Cowell) - people think its their god given right and duty to tell artistic expressionists and exhibitionists to please stop right now - lets face it - have you heard ol Simon Critic sing? - i haven't - maybe he can - maybe he cant - but he is currently the self appointed absolute final say on singing ability - And yes for the show its absolutely necessary. The audience loves a good creative assassination. A rip and tear of the fragile irresdecence of ethereal creative beauty.
We need more human driven creativity and artistic expression in all mediums. Its not just open to the few absolutely gifted ones at the very top of the artistic tree. Its everyones absolute life duty to find their medium of expression and fill the space with it.
For more artistic expressive beauty in this life - we simply need more handstand expressionists. We must not ever stifle creative expression - critics to my mind cant usually do what they criticize, therefore to look creatively and artistically capable they with much venom criticize the timid handstanders. Having the guts to perform is the hardest obstacle facing the creative expressionist - even if you draw stick men - draw , draw , draw - i love stick men - because that stick man drawn, with that pen, by you - is one of a kind - and we need more one of a kind originality in this drab ol grey critic fueled world of robotic soon to be everything heading in the same direction limited A.I. fervor.
Be very careful who you hand your artistic expressive ear to. They will mould you away or towards immense artistic self expressive satisfaction.
